


Angels and Animals

by TheArcher



Category: Haven (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Episode Fix-it, Episode: s04e13 The Lighthouse, Gen, Podfic Welcome, Season/Series 04, mentions of anti-black violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-20
Updated: 2020-09-20
Packaged: 2021-03-07 23:08:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,279
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26565604
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheArcher/pseuds/TheArcher
Summary: “The… the troubles are so twisted.” Audrey could still feel the aether on her hand, connecting her to the memory. “They take bits and pieces of a person and make them worse. That stops now.” Her voice grew stronger. “I’m going to make them better.”Audrey wrapped her aether covered hand around Duke’s neck and pulled him into a kiss.“You’re not killing anybody.”(Alternate Season 4 finale)
Relationships: Audrey Parker/Nathan Wuornos, Duke Crocker/Audrey Parker (mentioned), Duke Crocker/Jennifer Mason (Haven), Duke Crocker/Nathan Wuornos (mentioned)
Comments: 4
Kudos: 15





	Angels and Animals

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [It's That Pivotal Moment](https://archiveofourown.org/works/7692403) by [polytropic](https://archiveofourown.org/users/polytropic/pseuds/polytropic). 



> What’s up everybody I’m coming late to the fandom and I have OPINIONS!
> 
> I was so _very_ frustrated when Audrey didn’t change Duke’s trouble when she had the chance that I immediately stopped Netflix and went looking for fic of her doing that. I was very happy to find a couple including the inspiration to this: It’s That Pivotal Moment. I thought it was perfect! Then I watched the rest of the episode and it just kept making me upset that canon didn’t do what they Very Much should’ve done. (I read some synopses of season 5 and apparently that continues. disappoint) So I’m taking this concept and making a new season finale with a lot less death and a lot more kissing.

Audrey closed her hand and felt the dark powder coat itself onto her skin, molding to her fingers almost of its own accord.

Duke was in front of her, shirt open, ready for her hand to press the aether into his chest. If Audrey ever saw Duke shirtless again, her hand-print would be there. Maybe that’s why Duke did it this way. Unlike the grandfather whose arm she stained, this would be hidden from her. But Audrey didn’t want Duke to have to hide from her. As hard as it was, she wanted to know every intimate part of him. She wanted there to be another way. Duke didn’t deserve this. He just wanted to save this kid.

She looked up at his face. Suddenly she felt a head rush and she wasn’t at the Harker house. She was in a memory.

She was looking through a window at a group of townsfolk were huddled together talking – no, arguing.

“How?” Someone yelled.

“I don’t know how but I’m telling ya I saw it. Lester has Paul’s curse.”

Sounds of disbelief.

“Do you think… no couldn’t be.”

“Portia’s always been close to Paul. Do you think… Lester is Paul’s child?”

Various versions of no echoed through the group, followed by shushing noises. They didn’t want to be found. But of course her eyes were already on them, so it was too late.

“Passed on to children now.” An Italian accent said. “Disgusting. At first they wreck a person and now a family? I would kill to keep the next generation free from this.”

She looked to William next to her and smiled. _Now there’s an idea._

She was back in the present, standing in front of Duke. His eyes, a moment ago open to her, now narrowed in suspicion.

“What was that?” He said, emotionless.

Audrey could still feel _her,_ that other person she once was. She was still herself though. For now.

“The… the troubles are so twisted.” Audrey could still feel the _aether_ on her hand, connecting her to the memory. “They take bits and pieces of a person and make them worse.”

Duke listened, but he was cautious. He wanted to trust her, but wouldn’t hesitate to take her down if she might hurt other people. Just like that ancestor she heard, he would do anything to protect people.

“That stops now.” Her voice grew stronger. “I’m going to make them better.”

Audrey wrapped her aether covered hand around Duke’s neck and pulled him into a kiss.

“Um,” Jennifer said from her place to the side, “is this a part of it?”

“Wasn’t last time.” Gloria said.

Audrey pulled back and her hand dropped, leaving the black gold hand-print in its wake.

“I changed it Duke.” She smiled up at him. “You’re not killing anybody.”

–

Duke hadn’t exactly been excited about getting his trouble back. Everything about his trouble pissed him off. Getting it. Using it. Losing it. But now? Now he had to trust that Audrey had given him something close enough to his trouble that they could save this family.

“Okay,” he threw his arms out. “What do we do now?”

They had moved to a bedroom in the house so they could figure out what to do. Duke’s suggestion. Which, after that kiss, had everyone giving him looks. But hey, he hadn’t been the one who instigated the kissing. Nathan and Jennifer were only happy to follow him and Audrey upstairs.

“It feels different than last time.” Audrey said confidently. “I’m 99% sure it works like I think. Here, try with Nathan.” Audrey grabbed one of Nathan’s crossed arms and pulled him to Duke. She did a _voila_ motion at his stiff body. “Kiss him.”

“What?” Duke, Nathan, and Jennifer said simultaneously..

“Geez guys, how many blood related troubles have we faced and _this_ is weird?” 

Duke had to admit, Audrey was a lot more normal than she had been a few minutes before. Maybe she wasn’t turning into who William wanted after all.

“Fine.” Duke said. “How’s this?” He pecked Nathan on the cheek. “Feel that?”

“No.”

Audrey sighed, annoyed. Duke had kinda figured she would be, but he wasn’t working with a lot of information here. 

“Duke. This is different.” She said. “I know that your family trouble… it didn’t care about what you wanted. When that kid threw himself on your knife, the possession, none of it was you. But I know that you really want to help people and you can now. You just have to _mean_ it.”

Duke… well he was touched. He hadn’t thought anyone else really cared about that kind of thing. Everyone said his trouble was a balance in the universe. A thing to be used and he was the just one holding onto it. 

Bullshit. 

This one though? It _was_ made for a reason. Specifically for him. This was something he actually wanted do.

He stood in front of Nathan and lifted his hands, pausing to show Nathan that he was about to touch. Nathan sighed and let his crossed arms drop to his sides. 

Duke had thought about how to kiss Nathan before. How he should move his head so Nathan has some sort of feedback. Wondering if it would be weird for Nathan to feel his lips move but not the force that acted on them. If he would keep his eyes open to watch. 

With one hand on either side of his face, Duke tilted Nathan’s head and his eyes closed. That answered that question. Duke leaned in and kissed him.

Duke liked to joke around. To have fun. To say, “I didn’t mean it. Just kidding.” But when Duke thought about giving Nathan a life where he could feel everything he’d been missing, he meant it. Good and bad, because Nathan had spent so long without he could appreciate it all.

A sharp inhale. Nathan groaned and pressed forward, his hand grabbing Duke’s on his cheek. 

Duke felt a slow heat moving through his body and he almost kept kissing, before realizing there was a different kind of heat there. He pulled back.

It felt different, but Duke knew his eyes were silver when Nathan looked in them.

Duke smiled. “I take it that worked.”

Nathan had a dazed smile, but at Duke’s voice he tried to school his face to its typical neutral expression.

“Yeah. It did. You should get to bed. To Ben! Harker, I mean.” Nathan cleared his throat.

Duke made no effort to conceal his satisfaction. In fact, he made every effort to make it obvious. 

“Will do. Don’t miss me too much.” He brushed a finger across Nathan’s jaw, who turned his head away but brought his own hand to his face, reveling in the feeling.

He had a thankfully less intense kiss with Ben. He gave the baby a kiss on the forehead too, just to be sure, but his eyes didn’t turn. It was already done.

The baby woke up crying, but quieted when wrapped in his father’s arms.

\--

Jennifer was doing great. 

Duke didn’t kill anyone so of course she was great. 

Why wouldn’t she be great? So what her boyfriend had an intense supernatural kiss with Audrey and then that literal life changing kiss with Nathan. It was just his trouble and had nothing to do with her and anyway they had a lot to deal with right now. Jennifer and Audrey were literally beings from another world so who cares right?

Right.

They were in a cute little gazebo, which was not romantic in the slightest, and Jennifer was explaining what she’d figured out. They needed four people from the other world to come together to reveal the door.

Nathan ran his fingers over the texture of the table she was sitting at, feeling the lines in the wood. Duke and Audrey were practically hip to hip. Jennifer, again, tried to show the words inside the book but of course they didn’t see. She was alone in this, and that wasn’t analogous to anything in particular.

“I’ll handle William.” Audrey said.

“You sure you’re ready for that?” Duke said, hand on her shoulder.

“I have to be. Here’s here for me. He’s... waiting for me. I’ll get him to the lighthouse. You two find our fourth person.”

Audrey and Nathan walked off, ready to get to work. Jennifer stood from her seat and found Duke’s hand outstretched. She clasped it and he pulled her in tight so she could bury her head into his chest. He must’ve sensed how outside she felt. She adored him. “I’m glad you didn’t hurt anybody.”

“Yeah, heh. Me too.”

She tilted her head up, leaning in for a kiss but Duke stopped her.

“Hey, because of the… new trouble. Maybe we shouldn’t…”

She paused. “But I thought it didn’t work if you didn’t want it to.”

“That’s a theory, yeah, but we haven’t tested it on anyone I didn’t want cure. In case we’re wrong, we still need to know about that book. We shouldn’t risk it. Just to be safe, okay? Once William’s on the other side it’ll be smooch central.”

Duke pulled her back in for a hug and gave her a quick peck on the forehead. Like the one he’d put on Nathan the first time. The one that meant nothing.

Jennifer smiled. “Of course. Just to be safe.”

–

Duke and Dwight were at the docks. Someone said Big Scary and small creepy were nearby and if they were looking to capture some aliens, they were who Duke would bet on.

“I’m betting they’re not gonna come easy.” Duke loaded his gun.

Dwight gave his gun a skeptical look. “If you use that you’re gonna be pursuing them by yourself.”

Then he remembered the reason for Dwight’s ever present bulletproof vest.

“Right. Actually… about that?” Duke cringed. This was gonna sound weird. “I think I can help.”

“What do you mean?”

“The Trouble earlier, with the Harkers. I... fixed it.”

“ _You_ fixed it?” Dwight said, eyebrows raised.

“Audrey, or whatever Audrey used to be, she can give troubles. She gave me… a version of my trouble back.”

“This version any better?”

Duke smiles. “Oh a lot better. 100% less lethal. I was wondering if you wanted to get that vest off.”

“Maybe. What do I do?”

“Kiss me?”

Dwight laughed. “I’m flattered Duke but I think you’ve already got your hands full.”

“Hardy har.” Duke thwacked Dwight on his barrel chest. “Look I already tested it out. It’s tried and true. I _kiss_ someone. It kills their trouble. But hey if you don’t want that, just say so.” Duke backed up, hands in the air.

Dwight gave him that ‘are you stupid’ look. “Seriously?”

“Squatch, if I wanted to flirt with you, don’t you think I would’ve come up with a better line than ‘get that vest off’?”

Dwight’s eyes said he was considering. “I guess it’s worth a try. This way is… much less risky. If it doesn’t work I can still do my job.”

“Do it even better now that you got yourself a pick-me-up.” Duke stepped closer to Dwight in and pressed their lips together. Dwight kissed back – just slightly, probably out of habit – and a warm feeling spread through Duke’s body. This was much nicer than the bloodrush. Not addictive or destructive, just pleasant.

He pulled away, opening his eyes and seeing Dwight’s look back. “You still get super strong from that?” he asked.

In answer, Duke grabbed his arms and tried to lift Dwight a little. He didn’t budge. “Looks like not.”

“Alright.” Dwight pulled a taser out from a pocket. “Let’s still try without guns first. We need them in tact.”

“Sure. Don’t ever call me trigger happy.”

“Once this is over, I figure you’ll be kissing people all over town.”

Duke laughed. “Can’t wait.”

In the end it didn’t matter if they used a taser or bullets. The men were unaffected by either because they weren’t really people. They were constructs of William’s weird black orbs. They weren’t going to be their fourth.

–

Audrey felt good as she and Nathan headed to meet William. 

Well, good was relative. She felt… confident. Optimistic. Still, she was shaken by the memory of her former self. This wasn’t like remembering Lucy and it was far from the comfortable level of stepping into Lexie.

She felt her disgust for the townsfolk, like it was real and necessary. She knew the satisfaction that would come from making that ancient Crocker regret his words. It was horrifying. But it was also… enlightening. Before, no one knew where the troubles came from. Now they did.

Which meant they were one step closer to ending them.

At the bottom of the hill, Nathan took her hand and squeezed. “You ready?” She squeezed his back and smiled. At least she’d helped cure Nathan. That was the first step of many on the path to saving Haven.

Nathan moved to the side the hill, making his way through the trees with his tranq gun. Audrey slowly walked up and, just as she thought, William was waiting for her.

“I knew you’d come.” He said. “I felt you remember.”

Audrey nodded. “And I felt that you were here.”

“How do you feel?”

“Honestly? Pretty energized.”

William hopped up from his rock. “Yes! You always said creating a trouble made your day.”

“It really did.” Though Audrey didn’t think she’d call this a trouble. She felt like it made the opposite of trouble.

He moved closer, almost touching. “What did you remember? Me?”

Audrey wanted to roll her eyes but smiled instead. Keep him calm. “A little… It was just a flash. I remembered how I got the idea for the Crocker curse.”

“That one was so good. You were always more clever than me.” William’s fingers ran up and down her jacket and she wanted to break them. “I had the boring ideas. Weather controlling. Raising the temperature of things. Bo-ring. But you made things like…. Stealing other peoples organs through their throat.” William laughed with delight. “I mean who thinks of that?”

Audrey couldn’t keep her fake smile up.

“I came up with that?”

She should be moving, getting into a better position for Nathan to shoot William with the tranquilizer. Now she was paralyzed. All confidence vanished.

“Oh yeah.” William continued. “That one was _brutal_. Even the Guard had a hard time with that one. Hey do you remember the Guard?”

“What about the Guard?”

“I bet even Audrey Parker would like this one. We had a noble cause.”

Audrey stepped back. She couldn’t stand him being in her space. 

William ended up being the one who started walking first. She followed, chasing the answers she wasn’t sure she wanted.

“We were walking around town.” He said, hands in his pockets and head held high. “This was in the early days before they knew our faces, so we could still be in public. We came across this group of people surrounding this African woman we troubled a few weeks before. Now troubled people getting attacked was more than typical, but there were enough troubled that they could usually band together and get away. But this one was alone. Middle of the day. It was clear what was happening, but no one was coming to her aid.”

“Because she was black.”

William tipped his head to her. “You know in the world we come from, people don’t discriminate based on skin color.”

“No, you just physically mutilate people for generations.”

“Hey.” William stopped walking. “What happens in this dimension stays in this dimension.” He winked. Like the lives they’d ruined were just a fucking joke to him.

He walked a little circle around her. A vulture.

“You loved watching the people of this world crawl all over each other. But this wasn’t a fair fight.”

“She stopped them.”

He scoffed. “No. I stuck to troubling the white ones while you took the mob mentality into your own hands. Branded someone. Told them a story of their _mystical Mi’kmaq heritage,_ whatever that means, and that it was their duty to protect the troubled. They fell for it. And that has continued on so long that even Nathan has our symbol.” William made a gesture at the trees and his goons pulled Nathan into the field.

Audrey’s heart started racing. She had lost control of the situation and now Nathan was disarmed. “You knew.”

“Well I didn’t know but I suspected. You keep saying _she_. You should be saying, ‘I’ right?”

A knife was put to Nathan’s throat.

“Leave him alone.”

“I don’t think I will. Boys, why don’t you break him in a little?”

“No!”

The men kicked Nathan, forcing him to the ground. He cried out in pain.

“He can feel?” William sounded almost impressed. “How’d you do that?”

“Stop them!” Audrey shook William. She wanted to run in but it was two of them and she didn’t have her gun.

William snapped. “Crocker curse, right. Killed somebody’s dad huh?”

Audrey could’ve killed him.

Another pained cry came from Nathan. She ran to help him, but William caught her. She pushed at him. Nathan needed her.

The big one pulled his large fist back. This one would be bad.

“STOP!” Audrey yelled.

And he actually did. The little one too. They both stopped and watched her, as if they cared what she told them.

“That’s it.” William’s stupid smirk was back in full force. “Can you feel it? That’s the shell of Audrey Parker slipping away to make way for something much more.”

His henchmen. They were hers too. Of course. Was there any part of herself that wasn’t tied to this man?

“Now,” he pulled the aether box out of thin air and presented it to her, “put them away.”

Shakily, she took the box, held it out and said, “Go.” 

The goons dissolved into clouds of black droplets and swirled into the box. She gasped. They were so substantial before. That they could be willed away didn’t make any sense.

William pressed against her back and Audrey wasn’t sure it was only the revulsion that made her shiver. This felt familiar all of a sudden. “Give in to who you are. Why are you fighting? Don’t you like it? Don’t you want to have fun?”

Audrey couldn’t stop looking at the box of little black rocks. They looked so harmless but they were so powerful. 

And they were in her hands now.

“What a pathetic little animal.” William said, watching Nathan struggling to get up. “Don’t you want to give him a trouble?”

Audrey clenched her hands around the box and called them out.

A swirl of aether rose up from the box, twisting in the air.

“What are you making?” William asked.

“I-I don’t know.” Audrey said but that was a lie. 

The aether moved behind William and he turned to watch it, assuming she would do the same. Audrey closed the box, gripped it tight, and with one hard swing, William was down.

Audrey felt woozy and started to fall too, but Nathan caught her.

He whispered “I got you,” and lowered her to the ground.

“Cuff him quick.”

Audrey was still lucid but William didn’t stir when Nathan put the handcuffs on him. Maybe there was some kind of loophole on this connection thing.

“See?” She said, forcing her eyes to focus on Nathan. “Told you I could handle it.”

–

Jennifer was worried. Dave, widely distressed, proclaimed that the Teagues archive room had been robbed. If someone was onto them, it was probably William. If he knew what they were doing there was no chance they’d be able to get him to the lighthouse. If he knew…

Jennifer told Dave she needed to go and ran. Duke and Dwight were going after William’s henchmen. If they were the ones who broke into the archives, maybe they knew Duke was coming. She had to warn them.

Luckily, when Jennifer arrived at the docks, Duke and Dwight were safe.

“Those guys were just made up,” Duke said, “like that creature William made. Any luck with you guys?”

Jennifer shook her head. “Dave said someone broke into their secret research room. He’s going through what’s left, but Cabot’s journal is gone.”

“Someone stole it?”

“That’s what it looks like.” Jennifer squeezed the vampire book in her hands. “No one’s getting their hands on this.” She would protect it. It was the one thing in this mess that she sort of understood. If she couldn’t protect this, then what good was she?

Dwight drove them to the Herald offices to check how Vince had gone on his search. He was their last hope of finding the fourth person.

When they walked into the Herald offices, Dave was watching something on Vince’s laptop.

“Find a clue?” Jennifer said.

Dave slammed the laptop closed and twisted to look at them.

“We interrupting something?” Duke asked.

Dave gave a weird, stilted laugh. “Sorry. Didn’t hear you come in. Sensitive information and all.”

“Did you find anything in the adoption records?” Dwight asked.

“Yes.” Vince said. Dave turned to look at him so quickly Jennifer was worried he would fall over for a second. “Why don’t you tell them, Dave?”

“I can’t.” Dave hissed.

“Are you kidding?” Duke said. “You’re still keeping things from us?”

“From me too.” Vince said.

“Because you wouldn’t understand. None of you would!”

“If you know who the fourth person is,” Duke said, “you _have_ to tell us.”

“Is it… me?” Vince asked.

“Of course you’d think it’s you!” Dave sneered. “It’s always about _you_ , isn’t it? Well, guess what Vince! It’s not you this time!”

Jennifer had never seen him like this. Dave had always seemed kind, at least to her. He was one of the first people she met in Haven. He showed her Audrey’s picture and said that Jennifer was the one who would find her. He hired her and tried to make her feel welcome. Hell, he was even adopted like she was.

Oh.

“It’s you.” She said. “You’re like me.”

Dave’s shoulders dropped. Slowly, he nodded.

“Dave.” Vince said softly. Dave turned to look at his brother. “You could’ve told me.”

“Well now you know.”

“This is good, right?” Dwight asked. “We have enough people to open the door.”

“No.” Dave snapped. “We can’t open the door. It’s too dangerous!”

“That’s what you said before too.” Jennifer said. “When we brought Audrey back.”

“And I was right! William came with her and look what’s happened!”

“Which is why we need to door to get rid of him.” Duke said.

“But the door out of this world is just bad!” Dave’s face was terrified. “It’ll hypnotize me. Suck me through to the other side.”

“Why would it do that?” Jennifer asked.

“It’s done it before.” Dave said. He looked back at Vince. “I’ve seen the door before.”

Vince clenched his jaw. “Dwight. Take him.”

“Wait.” Jennifer said. “Dave if you’re like me, then shouldn’t you be able to see this too?” She pointed at the book.

Dave shook his head. “I don’t know why you can see it. I’m not troubled like you. I just know that whatever world is on that other side, it wants me. It could want you too.”

“Enough.” Dwight said and stepped between them. “Let’s go.”

Dave struggled but Dwight was much stronger and pulled him out the door.

Jennifer hugged her book to herself. The book really was just for her. The things she heard in the barn were for her too. It was terrifying, but more than that, it was motivating. She was meant to help. She had a job to do.

And no one was going to stop her.

–

Audrey kept the aether box on her while Nathan dumped William, tied up, in the back of his truck. She didn't know how to put it in that nothing space it had been pulled from and even if she did, it was too dangeous out of her sight.

Soon, they were on their way to the lighthouse, hoping that by the time they got there Duke and the others had found something.

“So.” Nathan said, eyes glancing between her and the road. “I couldn’t hear everything you were talking about but it sounded… bad?”

Audrey shook her head. “He was just bragging about the troubles he made with… the old me.”

“You know, whatever he said… it doesn’t change how I think about you.”

She gave Nathan a smile. Of course it didn’t. But it changed how she thought of herself. Once William was gone, where did she go from here?

Change of subject.

“You and Duke seemed pretty cozy.” Audrey teased. “He kissed you back to life.”

Nathan groaned. “Yeah, I’m sure he’ll hold that over me forever.”

“Can’t believe you two have never made out before. Probably would’ve cleared some of the tension.”

Nathan shifted in his seat, eyes staying forward.

“Wait…” Audrey twisted in her seat. “You two kissed before?”

“I didn’t said that.”

“But you’re not responding and you’re bad at lying.”

“I resent that. I’ve been a cop for years, okay? I’m great at lying.”

“Not to me. Not about things like this. What happened?”

“Nothing.”

Audrey smacked his shoulder. “Obviously not nothing. You’ve known each other since you were kids.” A huge grin took over her face. “Did you two practice kissing with each other?”

“No.” Nathan grimaced. “I practiced on my arm like a normal person.”

Audrey laughed. “I mean it’s pretty obvious Duke’s bi but you never said anything.”

“You never asked.”

Of course that would be Nathan’s response. It was definitely her lack of curiosity and not his inability to be vulnerable for longer than two seconds. She loved Nathan but just then she realized his past was almost as much of a mystery as her own.

“I’m asking now.” She spoke softly. “What happened?”

Nathan didn’t say anything, but he would. She let him take his time.

“You remember when I told you how he triggered my trouble?”

Audrey nodded. “You were on his boat.”

“We were fishing. Catching up. I was trying to understand him. Why he did the things he did. And he kissed me. Said he’d been waiting a long time to do it.”

Audrey put a hand on his knee.

“But it didn’t matter. He only did it cause he thought I would do him favors. Ten seconds later he was asking me to bail him out.”

“Nathan, I don’t think-”

“You know I didn’t yell at him?” Nathan interrupted. “Obviously I do now, a lot. But at the time I didn’t. I just did what he asked. Flashed my badge. Didn’t say anything. Didn’t feel anything.”

“But you did feel something. You felt betrayed by someone you loved.”

Nathan shook his head, but Audrey thought it was more to himself than her. 

He tapped his thumb against the steering wheel. “I know how he feels about you. And if you feel the same that’s fine. I’m not gonna…” Nathan gave a big sigh instead of finishing. “But I am not giving any more of myself to Duke Crocker.”

Audrey let her eyes trace Nathan’s face.

The troubles weren’t a gift to help people. She knew that better than ever now. But when she’d been able to help the troubled, it was because they used it as an opportunity to learn something about themselves.

Nathan had learned the exact wrong lesson.

–

Jennifer thought it was pretty weird to be walking on the beach with her bosses, one of whom was handcuffed, in order to use their otherworldly status to open a portal. She was getting used to weird though. Honestly, her boyfriend kissing someone else was one of the most normal things to happen to her since she got to Haven.

Duke stopped her on the path to the lighthouse. “Hey, you worried about this?”

“Worried? Why would I be worried?”

Duke pointed behind him at the Teagues and Dwight continuing forward. “All that stuff Dave was yelling about. What if this door pulls you in too?”

“Oh.” Jennifer hadn’t thought about it. Maybe, she should’ve but... “Does it matter? We have to do this.”

“Of course it matters. I don’t want to lose you.” Duke stroked her face, peering into her eyes. “Long distance relationships are pretty hard.”

What about this relationship had been easy? And when had anyone tried to stop Audrey from doing the scary things she did all the time?

“Are you in love with Audrey?”

Duke tilted his head. “I’m sorry?”

Shit. What a stupid question and at a time like this? 

Jennifer shook her head. “Nevermind. We should be focused.” She tried to move past but Duke didn’t let her.

“Hey, hey, come on.” Duke’s hands were around her waist and she was so embarrassed. “Look, I know earlier was weird, but it wasn’t like that. It was just the trouble thing. I kissed Nathan too and I doubt he’s talking to Audrey about us running off into the sunset, okay?”

Jennifer wasn’t so sure about that. “Look I shouldn’t have said anything. It’s fine let’s just go.” Duke still had a hold on her.

“Now, I don’t know about you, but I always taught not to go to bed – or to an underground supernatural cave – angry.”

She let a little laugh escape. “I’m not angry.”

“You sure? Cause you were about to storm off after accusing me of being in love with another woman.”

“I’m not angry!” She yelled, because damn it she hadn’t been _before_. “And I’m not accusing you of anything. You _are_ in love with Audrey. And maybe you’re in love with Nathan too. Or maybe not! It doesn’t matter! The point is that ever since I got to Haven I felt like I’ve been on the sidelines watching everyone else know what to do. Well now _I_ know something. I can do _something_. If I get sucked into some weird portal then at least I won’t be left behind.”

“Jennifer.” Duke exhaled. 

She closed her eyes, She didn’t want to see what he looked like when he realized how pathetic she was. Who wished for this stuff?

The hands at her waist wrapped her closer, pressing her head into his chest and she hugged back.

“I’m sorry.” He said.

Twin tears fell from her eyes like they had just been waiting for permission.

“I’m sorry.” He repeated. “I should’ve tried harder to make you feel like there was a place for you. Not just with me but with the town. I just… I was selfish. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you how I felt about...”

Jennifer shook her head. She didn’t feel like being jealous of Audrey anymore.

“And I’m sorry,” he continued, “that you ever thought that I knew what to do. Because I’m gonna be honest, I am making this up as I go. If I knew how to do anything, I wouldn’t have made you feel this way. But I do know one thing.” He lifted her head so they could lock eyes. “You’re not getting sucked into any portal. I’m gonna be there. With you.” He pulled her into a kiss.

She smiled into his mouth. “I thought you weren’t kissing me to be safe.”

“Eh, when am I ever safe?”

–

When Duke and Jennifer got to the heart of Haven, Dave had backed himself against a wall trying to be as far from the symbol on the ground as possible. Dwight, still wearing his bulletproof vest, was near Dave but hadn’t decided to put him anywhere. No need to start playing dirty before the game even began.

“You gonna take the vest off?” Duke said, gesturing at Dwight’s chest.

Dwight shrugged. “Still a cop. Couldn’t hurt.”

“Dave.” Duke tried to sound calming. “You’re gonna be alright.”

“Easy for you to say!” He spit out. “I’m gonna be the one sucked through!”

Audrey moved toward him. Duke saw she had been talking to that sleazeball William who was sitting on a rock, handcuffed and being watched by Nathan. Good.

“Dave.” Audrey said. “Whatever is going on, we can deal with it.”

“Maybe you can Audrey but what about the rest of us? What happens when the door opens and everything we thought we knew spins out of control?”

“What are you talking about?”

“The other world! It’s not something the human mind can comprehend. I know because I tried and I-” Dave broke off, face twisted in… something. Terror? Despair?

“When did this even happen?” Duke asked. “When were you somewhere none of the rest of us have been?”

Dave gave a cruel laugh. “This was way before your time.”

“Was it Sarah?” Audrey said.

Dave stopped his frantic shaking at the name.

“What,” Vince jumped in, “happened with you and Sarah where I wasn’t there?”

“We had a relationship outside of you, Vince! You don’t know everything!”

“I thought I knew my brother. Going behind my back twice-”

“Hey!” Audrey cut him off. “We’re not here to blame anybody okay? We just want to know what happened. Dave, please.”

Dave pursed his lips and Duke wondered if he was about the do his standard run around routine but he spoke.

“It was after we realized Sarah and the Troubles were connected. We were all looking for a way to end them. One day she called me, ME,” he directed to Vince, “saying she had found something strange in her backyard. Some kind of talisman and she wondered if I knew where it came from. I went to her house and when we both touched the talisman, a door appeared. Like the one that brought us Audrey. I asked how she did it but she didn’t know. I went closer, just to inspect it, but it opened by itself and I… I was drawn to it. Like nothing I’ve ever felt, before or since. I didn’t have my own thoughts, I didn’t have feelings. There was only the door. And when I went through, I fell. I fell forever. Something… chewed me up and spat me back out.”

Dave’s eyes were unfocused, looking into the middle distance. Duke had known Dave his whole life and he’d never seen him like this.

He put an arm around Jennifer. That wasn’t going to happen again. Not to anyone.

“That sounds awful.” Audrey put a hand on Dave’s arm. She froze, eyes wide.

“Audrey?” Duke said. He heard Nathan echo his worry. Looking over, he saw William stand up as well. “You sit the hell down! I’m watching you.”

William put his cuffed hands up in a mock surrender and sat back down, a stupid satisfied look on his face.

Audrey exhaled, signaling her return.

“Another memory?” Nathan asked, sounding optimistic. “Was it Sarah?”

Audrey looked at Nathan, then Duke, and said what Duke already knew. “It wasn’t Sarah.”

“That’s it.” Duke said. “We’ve got to do this now. Vince, you hold onto Dave to make sure he doesn’t go through the door. I’m gonna do the same with Jennifer. Nathan, with Audrey. And Dwight? You’re gonna make sure William goes.”

“Oh I’ll go.” Everyone turned to look at him. “Really. I have no objections to going home.” He smiled at Audrey. “I just want you to come with me.”

“No.” Nathan said.

“Wasn’t asking you.”

“No.” Audrey said.

He clicked his tongue. “Wasn’t asking Audrey Parker either. Look at you. You’re so close. Dig just a _little_ deeper and you’ll remember who you really are.”

“Enough.” Nathan’s stern voice cut in and Jennifer jumped a little. “Let’s do this.”

Dwight pulled William into position. Vince coaxed Dave onto the symbol. Audrey tried to shake off her memory and moved to stand with Nathan across from Dave. Duke and Jennifer moved to the last spot. It was a circle but somehow Duke still felt like they were the head. When Jennifer stepped onto the person carving, they looked around but nothing happened.

Duke’s hands slid over her shoulders and he leaned in. “What now?”

Jennifer looked through her book. “I don’t know. The book doesn’t say anything else.”

So the book was done. That only had… “What do _you_ think we should do?”

She seemed surprised at the suggestion that she might know. He squeezed her shoulders in assurance.

Jennifer looked at the cover, seeing something there Duke couldn’t, then she reached out, pointing the book to the center. The ground moved unnaturally to make room for a white door to slide up out of it. Slowly, the door swung open revealing nothing but fog leading to the unknown.

–

Audrey felt… interested in the door. Like it was familiar somehow. She wondered if that was how Mara got here in the first place.

“Whoa!” she heard Duke say from his position, and then a gentle thumping sound. Jennifer had dropped the book. “I gotcha.” His arms wrapped around Jennifer’s waist. Her face was blank and she was trying to walk through the door, but Duke’s grip was strong.

Vince and Dave weren’t having the same success. Dave was struggling harder and Vince didn’t have the height difference Duke had on Jennifer. 

Dwight pushed William forward.

“Last chance.” William told her.

“Dave stop!” Vince cried. 

Dave broke free of his grip, running for the door. Dwight automatically moved to grab Dave but that loosened his grip on William.

William broke free and reached for Audrey. He grabbed her hands.

Electricity ran between them, making the hairs on her arm stand up. It was too much. There was a warmth and pain and terror and power and _her_. 

Mara. 

She was here now. She looked into William’s eyes and saw the person she loved most in the world.

Nathan pushed him away from her and she tried to hold on. Nathan looked at her in surprise. 

She punched him in the stomach.

He doubled over in pain. Good. William was hers and no one would hurt him but her.

No one would hurt him… but her? She loved him and she would still… was this who she was?

Nathan’s hand grabbed hers. “Audrey, this isn’t you.”

And she looked into Nathan’s eyes and saw the person she loved most in the world. The father of her child. Wait.

“Look at me!” William yelled as Dwight wrenched him away.

“Throw him through Dwight!” Duke yelled.

Duke Crocker? But… Duke was just a kid?

William was struggling and Dwight punched him to get him to go down. She felt her head throw back in exactly the same way. She fell softly, someone gently letting her down. 

She could hear her William laugh from his place on the ground.

“Don’t get too forceful now.” He said.

A hand pulled her head to face another man. “Audrey stay with me.”

Who was Audrey? And who was this man touching her?

“Get away from me!” She shouted and pushed him away. She pushed herself to her feet and the man reached again but her hand slapped his away.

Looking up, she saw a large man pulling someone with cuffed hands. What was going on?

“Stop!” At her shout, the door in the middle of the room slammed shut. The large man turned toward her and… he looked familiar. The face wasn’t quite right but... “Martin? Martin Hendrickson?”

“That your father?” A voice from behind her said. “Maybe she’s remembering Lucy.”

The man shook his head. “Not my father or grandfather. She must be further back than that.”

“Of course she is.” The man he was dragging (William?) picked himself up from the ground. “Look at me. Tell me your name.”

She hadn’t remembered him a moment ago but now, of course she knew him. How could she have forgotten?

Other people were speaking now.

“What is happening to her?”

“What happened to the door?”

“Should we stop her?”

“ _Can_ we stop her?”

It didn’t matter. Just background chatter. She was looking at William and feeling things she couldn’t name. Was he a memory? A vision? What was he asking for? A name? What was her name?

Her hand moved of its own accord and touched William’s cheek. A burst of color flashed in front of her eyes and she was… she _was_. For so long she hadn’t been.

Through the shouts, a single voice stood out. “What is your name?” As the colors in her mind slowed, she finally knew the answer.

She smiled.

William smiled back.

“Audrey Parker.”

She pushed William with all the force she could muster. The door swung open and he fell through, disappearing into the impenetrable fog that covered the space between worlds. 

The door slammed shut behind him.

The only sound in the cavern under the lighthouse was Audrey’s heaving breath. She was exhausted but exhilarated. She just finished a marathon.

Dave and Jennifer stop their attempts at moving to the door, blinking into themselves. Duke brushed his hands over Jennifer’s hair, looking over her face. “You good?” She nodded and he peppered her face with kisses.

Vince and Dave embraced in a way Audrey had never seen them before. Like there wasn’t anything between them anymore. Vince clapped a hand on Dwight’s shoulder. “Thank you for saving him.”

“Audrey?” She turned to see Nathan approaching cautiously. “What just happened?”

She laughed. “A lot.”

Duke’s voice called out. “Did we just win?"

Audrey couldn’t keep the ear splitting smile off her face if she wanted to. And she definitely didn’t want to. “We won!”

Nathan grabbed her around her waist and spun her around. Whoops and hollers echoed through the room. Audrey kissed Nathan and he could feel her, but he could also feel her clothes and the ground and the air. He could feel the whole world. There was no weight on her shoulders.

“Hey guys.” Dwight’s voice broke through their cheers. “Shouldn’t the door be gone now?”

They looked and he was right. The door was closed but it was still sitting there, like a bad prop.

“Jennifer,” Duke said. “Can you put it back?”

She picked the book up from where she had dropped it and stretched it to the door like she had before. Nothing happened. 

She pulled it back and tried again. Nothing.

She opened it and flipped through, squinting at the pages. 

“It just says… knock knock?”

Two knocks rang out, coming from nowhere and everywhere. Nathan stiffened. Audrey pulled her shoulders back, ready for a fight.

The door slowly opened and out walked Agent Howard.

“Audrey. Very good.” He said casually, as if this were just another one of their regular meetings. He closed the door behind him and it slowly sank back into the ground. He nodded at Jennifer. “And Jennifer. You’ve made me very proud.”

Audrey would need days to sort through all her memories of him to see how she should feel about this.

“What are you doing here?” She asked.

Howard clasped his hands together. “I suppose it’s time we end the troubles.”

END SEASON 4

 _“Oh we’re a mess, poor humans, poor flesh—hybrids of angels and animals, dolls with diamonds stuffed inside them We’ve been to the moon and we’re still fighting over Jerusalem. Let me tell you what I do know: I am more than one thing, and not all of those things are good. The truth is complicated. It’s two-toned, multi-vocal, bittersweet. I used to think that if I dug deep enough to discover something sad and ugly, I’d know it was something true. Now I’m trying to dig deeper." _\- Richard Siken


End file.
